The impact of exposure to tobacco smoking and maternal trauma in fetal life on risk of migraine

Magdalena Kobus; Aneta Sitek; Bogusław Antoszewski; Jacek J Rożniecki; Jacek Pełka; Elżbieta Żądzińska

doi:10.3389/fnins.2023.1191091

The impact of exposure to tobacco smoking and maternal trauma in fetal life on risk of migraine

Front Neurosci. 2023 Jun 29:17:1191091. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1191091. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Magdalena Kobus¹, Aneta Sitek¹, Bogusław Antoszewski², Jacek J Rożniecki³, Jacek Pełka⁴, Elżbieta Żądzińska^{1

5}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Lodz, Łódź, Poland.
² Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Esthetic Surgery, Institute of Surgery, Medical University of Lodz, Łódź, Poland.
³ Department of Neurology, Stroke and Neurorehabilitation, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland.
⁴ Department of Neurology, Norbert Barlicki Memory University Teaching Hospital, Lodz, Poland.
⁵ Biological Anthropology and Comparative Anatomy Research Unit, School of Medicine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia.

Abstract

Introduction: Prenatal period is the key time in human development. Many prenatal factors are well-known and increase the risk of developing diseases' after birth. Few studies indicated the link between the prenatal period and the prevalence of migraine in childhood and adolescence so far. We decided to broaden current knowledge and investigate whether the prenatal factors influence the prevalence of migraine in adulthood. The objective of this study is to provide evidence of relationship between in utero environment and risk of migraine.

Methods: In total 266 females (136 in the migraine group, 130 in the control group) and 80 males (35 in the migraine group, 45 in the control group), aged 18-65 participated in the study. The quality of prenatal environment was characterized on the basis of mother's and father's education, tobacco smoke exposure, alcohol consumption, and traumatic event during pregnancy, which are considered as prenatal factors and affect on fetal development.

Results: Migraine occurrence in adulthood was significantly associated with maternal tobacco smoking during pregnancy (OR 3.42, 95% CI 1.54-7.61, p = 0.036) and traumatic event during pregnancy (OR 2.27, 95% CI 1.24-4.13, p = 0.020).

Discussion: Our study suggests that the fetal programming effect of tobacco smoking exposure and maternal trauma is not limited to prenatal life and is suggested as having a role in adulthood. Our findings support evidence that migraine adulthood can be partly influenced by early life conditions.

Keywords: headache; migraine; pregnancy; prenatal period; stress; tobacco smoking; trauma.